The Criminal Justice System Of The San Diego Sheriff s...

I interviewed Doug Brassington who worked for the San Diego Sheriff’s department for 23 years. He worked his way up to the rank of detective and also worked as a school resource officer. He enjoyed working as a school resource officer the most because he was helping students. He also told me his insights about the criminal justice system. First he explained that the minimum requirements to get hired was a high school degree, but many of the people he worked with had an Associates or Master’s degree. He said that he had a Master’s degree, which helped him get promoted to detective. Once a department hires someone they put them through all of the necessary training to perform the tasks required. So, even though the minimum requirement is a†¦show more content†¦He really enjoyed seeing how his work affected students’ lives for the better. His least favorite part of this job was dealing with the parents because a lot of parents would not believe that their child had done anything wrong, so they would not help turn their child away from dangerous activities. This perspective is interesting because it shows that parents do not always know what their child is doing and may be too stubborn to address an issue that concerns police. Then he explained to me how often police officers must testify in court. He mentioned that officers who do traffic stops must testify in court 3-5 times a week. They rarely have to appear in jury trials, and simply explain the situation to a judge. As a detective Brassington would have to testify in front of a jury 2-3 times every month. As we learned in chapter 8 relaying what happened to a victim or what was found at a crime scene would make police officers lay witnesses. Which means they explain to a jury the facts and what evidence was found at the scene. He believes that punishment should depend on the crime. If it is a minor crime like drug possession or petty theft they should pay a fine and be required to take classes that try to fix the behavior. If it is their first time caught committing a crime law enforcement must â€Å"put the fear of god in them.† Meaning that the police must work to deter them from committing another crime